After a hectic schedule at Junior College World Series, Pioneers take a breather while Wallace goes exploring

Published: Sunday, May 26, 2013 at 3:15 a.m.

Last Modified: Monday, May 27, 2013 at 12:56 a.m.

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — On what would be their only day off in the JUCO World Series, Spartanburg Methodist baseball players took a vote on whether to go on a sightseeing tour of spectacular views.

It was unanimous.

No way.

And, really, who could blame them?

Their schedule has been hectic since leaving Spartanburg on Tuesday and their arriving here in Grand Junction on Wednesday.

There was the Challenge Baseball game for special needs children on Thursday, the annual World Series banquet on Friday (that seemed to take an entire week by itself) and finally game day on Saturday, when the Pioneers beat Walters State, running themselves ragged around the bases in a 19-11 victory at Suplizio Field.

All that, plus adapting to the desert climate, had the guys wiped out. So it was decided that they would have lunch at noon, practice at 4 p.m. and nothing else scheduled. Players could go out with their parents, chill at the hotel or whatever.

There was a bus that went to the Sunday night game between Neosho County (Kansas) and Cochise (Ariz.), determining SMC's opponent on Tuesday, winners' bracket or elimination game, following the Pioneers' Monday afternoon game against Connors State (Okla.). Most of the guys went to check out some of that before the bus picked them back up.

But just because the players passed on sightseeing didn't mean head coach Tim Wallace was going to do the same. He was out of the hotel at 6 a.m., climbing into the pickup truck of longtime friend Tex Tolman, a legendary coach in these parts and World Series worker since 1973.

They were gone nearly six hours, driving through old mining country and telling stories.

About the balk

SMC relief pitcher Rickey Rice was charged with a balk Saturday and Wallace came out of the dugout to discuss it with the second-base umpire. Wallace shared that conversation on Sunday.

“What did he do differently than he's been doing?” Wallace asked the umpire.

“Coach, he rolled right through and he never stopped,” the ump said.

“Well, we took a poll in the dugout,” Wallace said, “and you were wrong.”

Wardrobe malfunction

The new shirts arrived.

SMC pitcher Dylan Rogers was the first to notice there was a problem.

“Coach, have you seen the logos on the T-shirts?” he said.

“What are you talking about?” Wallace said.

“The logos on the shirts are not ours.”

And, yes, in fact the SMC logos on the shirts they are selling at the World Series say Spartanburg Methodist College, but above that is an interlocked S and C. It's actually the logo of Southern Cal.

How this happened is a complete mystery and not one that got a pleasant reaction from Wallace. He had a few words with the owner of the print company. The correct logo was sent straight from the college, but should have been on file because the Pioneers were just here last year.

This is not the first logo mistake. The same company has screwed it up twice now in six appearances since 2000 under Wallace. To make amends, or at least try, SMC's group all got complimentary shirts with the correct logo.

Those will be collectors' items. The ones bought at the stadium, the ones with the Southern Cal logo, will not.

Arm strength

Even after a first-round game in which SMC allowed 18 hits, the Pioneers are still in great shape with the pitching staff.

“As bad as it was, we're in the winners' bracket,” Wallace said. “The good thing is that with the day off, all those arms are covered. Rogers (2 2/3 innings, 69 pitches) is not going to relieve. If we have success, we'll roll him back out there as a starter. … All those relievers will be fine. We'll probably sit on (Josh) Escoffier another day (after he threw 78 pitches), but he rebounds quickly. (Cody) Mincey and Rice didn't throw too much (31 and 24 pitches, respectively).

“But there's no way we can continue to walk seven or eight guys and win here. We can't afford to make the mistakes we made pitching-wise yesterday. I think they were nervous. Hopefully, everybody will buy into how to prepare. It's a different world out here.”

SMC will go with left-hander Jimmy Lindberg (6-2, 3.34 ERA) on Monday afternoon and everybody in the bullpen except Escoffier will be available.

<p>GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — On what would be their only day off in the JUCO World Series, Spartanburg Methodist baseball players took a vote on whether to go on a sightseeing tour of spectacular views.</p><p>It was unanimous.</p><p>No way.</p><p>And, really, who could blame them? </p><p>Their schedule has been hectic since leaving Spartanburg on Tuesday and their arriving here in Grand Junction on Wednesday. </p><p>There was the Challenge Baseball game for special needs children on Thursday, the annual World Series banquet on Friday (that seemed to take an entire week by itself) and finally game day on Saturday, when the Pioneers beat Walters State, running themselves ragged around the bases in a 19-11 victory at Suplizio Field.</p><p>All that, plus adapting to the desert climate, had the guys wiped out. So it was decided that they would have lunch at noon, practice at 4 p.m. and nothing else scheduled. Players could go out with their parents, chill at the hotel or whatever. </p><p>There was a bus that went to the Sunday night game between Neosho County (Kansas) and Cochise (Ariz.), determining SMC's opponent on Tuesday, winners' bracket or elimination game, following the Pioneers' Monday afternoon game against Connors State (Okla.). Most of the guys went to check out some of that before the bus picked them back up.</p><p>But just because the players passed on sightseeing didn't mean head coach Tim Wallace was going to do the same. He was out of the hotel at 6 a.m., climbing into the pickup truck of longtime friend Tex Tolman, a legendary coach in these parts and World Series worker since 1973. </p><p>They were gone nearly six hours, driving through old mining country and telling stories.</p><p><b>About the balk</b></p><p>SMC relief pitcher Rickey Rice was charged with a balk Saturday and Wallace came out of the dugout to discuss it with the second-base umpire. Wallace shared that conversation on Sunday.</p><p>“What did he do differently than he's been doing?” Wallace asked the umpire.</p><p>“Coach, he rolled right through and he never stopped,” the ump said.</p><p>“Well, we took a poll in the dugout,” Wallace said, “and you were wrong.”</p><p><b>Wardrobe malfunction</b></p><p>The new shirts arrived.</p><p>SMC pitcher Dylan Rogers was the first to notice there was a problem.</p><p>“Coach, have you seen the logos on the T-shirts?” he said.</p><p>“What are you talking about?” Wallace said.</p><p>“The logos on the shirts are not ours.”</p><p>And, yes, in fact the SMC logos on the shirts they are selling at the World Series say Spartanburg Methodist College, but above that is an interlocked S and C. It's actually the logo of Southern Cal.</p><p>How this happened is a complete mystery and not one that got a pleasant reaction from Wallace. He had a few words with the owner of the print company. The correct logo was sent straight from the college, but should have been on file because the Pioneers were just here last year.</p><p>This is not the first logo mistake. The same company has screwed it up twice now in six appearances since 2000 under Wallace. To make amends, or at least try, SMC's group all got complimentary shirts with the correct logo.</p><p>Those will be collectors' items. The ones bought at the stadium, the ones with the Southern Cal logo, will not. </p><p><b>Arm strength</b></p><p>Even after a first-round game in which SMC allowed 18 hits, the Pioneers are still in great shape with the pitching staff.</p><p>“As bad as it was, we're in the winners' bracket,” Wallace said. “The good thing is that with the day off, all those arms are covered. Rogers (2 2/3 innings, 69 pitches) is not going to relieve. If we have success, we'll roll him back out there as a starter. … All those relievers will be fine. We'll probably sit on (Josh) Escoffier another day (after he threw 78 pitches), but he rebounds quickly. (Cody) Mincey and Rice didn't throw too much (31 and 24 pitches, respectively). </p><p>“But there's no way we can continue to walk seven or eight guys and win here. We can't afford to make the mistakes we made pitching-wise yesterday. I think they were nervous. Hopefully, everybody will buy into how to prepare. It's a different world out here.”</p><p>SMC will go with left-hander Jimmy Lindberg (6-2, 3.34 ERA) on Monday afternoon and everybody in the bullpen except Escoffier will be available. </p><p>But he can't be ruled out. His arm is 90 percent rubber.</p>